Dumbest rule in football.

[jrocx69]

Originally Posted by Beemnseven

OK, here's another rule I don't understand:

Can someone tell me what the difference is between pass interference and illegal contact (when the defender touches the receiver beyond five yards) ?

One is penalized only five yards, while the other gets the ball placed where the infraction happened. And I know it's not dependent on who the intended receiver is -- I originally thought the pass interference was called only on the intended receiver, while illegal contact was called on any receiver. But watching the Atlanta-Buffalo game, the ball was thrown at a Buffalo wideout, who was touched well after 5 yards, and it was an illegal contact penalty. But why wasn't it pass interference?

Is it simply a judgement call? Or am I missing something?

PI is when the ball is out of the qb's hands already in the air, and Ic is when the ball is still in the qb's hands, IINM

[Beemnseven]

Originally Posted by jrocx69

PI is when the ball is out of the qb's hands already in the air, and Ic is when the ball is still in the qb's hands, IINM

That makes sense, but yesterday during the Falcons-Bills game, the ball was in the air, and they called illegal contact. Now, I should mention it was one of those very late flags, the kind that the official throws well after the play, when the receiver protested heavily.

It seems that pass interference is called when the receiver is absolutely mauled by a defensive back right before the ball arrives, while illegal contact is just that -- very minimal contact. To me, it looks like nothing but a judgement call, dependent on the mood of the official at the time.